Bonhams has announced that it has been commissioned to sell a recently discovered 1928 Mercedes-Benz 26/120/180 ‘S’ Type Sports Tourer, which has been in the same family ownership from new. It is expected to sell for more than £1.5m at Bonhams’ Goowood Revival sale on September 15.
The legendary “Kompressor” (Supercharger in German) Mercedes “S” series of the 1920s re-established Mercedes’ reputation for building fast, luxurious and high quality motorcars. Ferdinand Porsche designed the supercharged 6.8-liter engine which was set in a low-slung chassis frame and adorned with the now iconic Mercedes “V” radiator grille. Capable of more than 100 mph, the “S” was first seen at the Nürburgring in 1927, where it won in the 5-Liter class and recorded the fastest time of the day at the hands of ace driver Rudi Caracciola.
Production cars promptly followed after this success and the current owner’s grandfather, himself a noted and pioneering British motorist, would have been one of the earliest buyers of one of these cars. Sold under order number 38130, the “S” Type was supplied through ‘The British Mercedes Ltd.’ in London and was bodied by local London-based coachbuilders Cadogan Motors with lightweight fabric sports tourer bodywork. The completed car was registered for the road in May 1928.
Painted in dark battleship grey, this majestic yet understated Mercedes has never been restored, and even retains its original blue leather upholstery in its entirety. A timewarp find that has been parked in the same garage since the 1930s, and laid up since the 1950s, its unworn 1928 logbook evidences a passage of ownership within the same family throughout.
